Prince Harry calls out royal family’s media approach in court case against Associated Newspapers

Prince Harry has called out the royal family’s “never complain, never explain” approach to the media.

The 38-year-old claimed on Tuesday that palace staff kept him in the dark about the media’s invasion of his privacy to avoid him opening “a can of worms”.

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In his new testimony on the second day of the hearing at London’s High Court against Associated Newspapers - parent company of the Daily Mail - Harry claimed that the palace “withheld information ... (for) a long time” in terms of his privacy and phone hacking.

“Following the death of my mother in 1997 when I was 12 years old and her treatment at the hands of the press, I have always had an uneasy relationship with the press,” he told the court, in a statement released following Tuesday’s proceedings.

“However, as a member of the Institution the policy was to ‘never complain, never explain.’ There was no alternative; I was conditioned to accept it.

“For the most part, I accepted the interest in my performing my public functions.”

However once his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex came into the picture, Harry said he became “increasingly troubled by the approach of not taking action against the press in the wake of vicious persistent attacks on, harassment of and intrusive, sometimes racist articles concerning Meghan.”

He said that during her first pregnancy and following the birth of their son Archie, 3, “the situation got worse”.

In 2018, once the prince realised he “had a claim” against Associated Newspapers, he said the institution was “without a doubt withholding information from me for a long time”.

“That has only become clear in recent years as I have pursued my own claim with different legal advice and representation.”

“The bubble burst in terms of what I knew in 2020 when I moved out of the United Kingdom,” he said in reference to the Sussex family’s move to Montecito, California.

He alleged that other members of the Royal Family also had brought up phone hacking claims.

“There was never any centralised discussion between us about who had brought claims as each office in the Institution is siloed. There is this misconception that we are all in constant communication with one another but that is not true.”

Harry is just one of several big names to have filed lawsuits against Associated Newspapers, alleging phone taping and other invasions of privacy.

Other co-claimants include Sir Elton John, Liz Hurley, Sadie Frost, former British MP Simon Hughes and David Furnish.

Following Harry’s surprise arrival in the UK earlier this week for the hearing - expected to last several days - he “made contact” with his father King Charles but was told the King was “busy,” Daily Mail reports.

King Charles is working from his Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire and is travelling to Germany on Wednesday for a three-day state visit, while William and Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales, are on holiday with their children.

It is not known where Harry is staying during his visit, but the Duke of Sussex is still able to access his former UK base, Frogmore Cottage, until June, after which he and Meghan must vacate the premises.

It’s believed neither Charles nor William has spoken to Harry since the publication of his controversial memoir, Spare.

However, it’s understood Harry will attend Charles’ coronation in May - albeit alone.

According to Princess Diana’s former butler, Meghan is “not brave or strong enough” to make the trip.

“It’s likely to be incredibly uncomfortable for them if they attend, particularly Meghan,” Paul Burrell told Closer magazine.

“Are they prepared to face the music?

“I don’t think Meghan’s brave or strong enough to be there - she’d have to look in the eyes of a family she’s pushed under the bus.

“But I think Harry may come alone and she’s probably told him she won’t be able to be by his side with him if he does attend.”

It’s expected that Prince Harry will make a whirlwind 48-hour visit to the UK from his home base of California for the coronation in an operation dubbed “Harry in a hurry”.

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